Dean of NYU-Stern on the Benefits of an MBA, Leadership

The MBA is not a vocational degree anymore, says NYU-Stern’s Dean Thomas Cooley. Not at the top schools, at least. At the best business schools, students engage their business minds in all sorts of ways--not just critically and analytically, but historically and ethically. And that’s more than what you get out of an apprenticeship model.

Dean Cooley also addresses the question of whether leadership can be taught. He says something like, you can teach certain techniques… some people think you can teach it…it’s a process. But, confusingly, he then defines a good leader as a person with character and values, clear goals, hard focus and superior communication skills—soft skills. So his answer is no...but yes? It almost seems like he thinks no but, for obvious reasons, says yes.

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